George Oakley is a Georgian-born American composer who “represents a return to a great tradition” (Jay Nordlinger, music critic). His unique musical style, deeply narrative and symbolic, derives from the rich folklore of Georgia, the long tradition of Western classical music, and his personal philosophical reflections. In 2018, Oakley’s debut CD album, “Wanderer” was released by NAXOS under the American Classics imprint. American Record Guide writes about the album: “…This is a wonderful set of works by a composer whose every work opens up a wide, kaleidoscopic new world of melodic possibility.” Gramophone describes Oakley’s music as “…ardent and propulsive music that sounds like the product of an original and fertile mind.”

Oakley’s music has been performed at major stages and festivals including Carnegie Hall, Steinway Hall, Merkin Hall, Baryshnikov Arts Center, Le Poisson Rouge, Roerich Museum, Salmagundi Art Club (New York), Chicago Cultural Center, Kakhidze Music Center (Georgia), Mannes Sounds Festival, the Oracle Piano Society in Arizona and the Bermuda Piano Festival. His music has been broadcasted by New York’s main Classical Music Radio Station WQXR, New Sounds and WFMT radio stations.

Born in Tbilisi, Republic of Georgia, George Oakley studied piano at the V. Sarajishvili Tbilisi State Conservatory. In 2003, after winning the top prize at the Flier International Piano Competition, he moved to the United States to continue his education at DePaul University in the studio of Eteri Andjaparidze. A featured alumnus of the Steinhardt School at New York University, Oakley studied film scoring with Ira Newborn and classical composition with Justin Dello Joio. After NYU, Oakley was mentored by the composer Richard Danielpour, who has said that “George Oakley is a composer of extraordinary gifts whose music speaks to the heart as well as the mind.”